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How to lay the groundwork for making alcohol-free wine

18 September 2024 By Michael Huband

From vineyards to vacuum distillation, Zeno has learned that every stage of the process is vital to making award-winning alcohol-free wines.

Zeno, which launched its range of alcohol-free wines in 2022, chooses the term ‘alcohol liberated’ to describe its wines. It is a neat positioning for the brand. On the one hand, it has a more relaxed, less scientific connotation than ‘alcohol-free’ or ‘non-alcoholic’. It also hints at an idea, though sacrilege in some circles, that some wines could benefit from the removal of alcohol. In a relatively new category, that kind of bold, challenging idea can work wonders.

However, it also reminds us of the reality of making alcohol-free wines. No wine is produced alcohol-free, but rather the alcohol must be removed. It adds another process to an already considerable list, from growing, to harvest, to fermentation, to blending, to bottling. In fact, it requires each of those processes to be reconsidered, given the extent to which dealcoholisation might change the wine’s character.

So what exactly are the characteristics needed to produce an award-winning alcohol-free wine? As a company that produces nothing else, Zeno has a couple of ideas.

Selecting raw materials

The first stage in any winemaking is selecting your grapes, and for alcohol-free wines that is no different. Selecting the right sites and the right varieties will determine the final product and its success. Crucially, in making alcohol-free wines, the dealcoholisation process will fundamentally change the product: you therefore have to make adjustments from the very beginning.

The choices are particularly pressing for Zeno. Alcohol-free wines often contain a lot of added sugar to soften any rough edges, or will supplement their flavours with strong additives like tea. Since Zeno avoids either – its sugar content is low for the category at less than 30g/l – the selection of raw materials is vital.

The grapes used must retain aromatic and structural fidelity throughout the winemaking process, and so the requirements may not match standard winemaking. At Zeno, the team has identified a few hallmarks. In white grapes, they seek an aromatic, vibrant character while the black grapes should have defined berry flavours and robust tannins. They have therefore found success with a variety of grapes: Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon, Grenache, Viura, Macabeo and Bobal.

As that list might indicate, Zeno produces its alcohol-free wines in Spain. Its single estate, the La Carrasca vineyard in Castille-La Mancha, allows the team to monitor the grapes at every stage, constantly assessing acidity, sugar levels, tannin structure and aromatics.

Being based in Spain provides an ideal climate for the grapes’ development, as well as a catalogue of long-established varieties from which to choose. It also has the most organic vineyards in the world. Despite the high-tech processes, Zeno maintains a commitment to minimal environmental impact; its wines are both organic and vegan.

Maintaining the quality

Viticulture is, of course, not the whole story in crafting a wine. The processes beyond harvest, particularly in the case of alcohol-free wines, dramatically change its eventual character.

While its vineyards, in historic Spain, are a nod to tradition, its technology is truly innovative. To remove the alcohol from its wines, Zeno uses low temperature vacuum distillation. For all its technical wizardry, the process is quick, processing the wine in a single pass. That minimises the intervention and processing of the wine, retaining as much of its natural charm as possible while reducing the alcohol to negligible levels.

An equivalent level of care is shown in the team behind the brand. Hodgson and Willis, the co-founders, are both veterans of the wine trade and so bring category knowledge and commercial sense. The winery likewise brings an experienced team to assist in production.

However, Zeno went above and beyond in engaging Jane Masters MW as its technical director for the R&D stage. With more than 30 years experience in the trade, for 17 of which she has been a Master of Wine, she brings expertise that few in the world can match. As much as anything, it is a statement of intent: just because the wines are liberated from alcohol, that does not mean less care has gone into them.

That quality pedigree, in fact, means that more and more consumers are seeing the care put into wines. With Spain on the doorstep of many key markets, it has been able to enter several key competitions, with appreciable success. The wines have, for instance, secured Silver medals at the Global Low and No Masters; 95 points at the International Wine and Spirits Competition; and Gold at the World Alcohol Free Awards.

Moreover, that is corresponding to consumer uptake. With listings in retailers ranging from Waitrose to Hedonism, drinkers are getting the chance to test the quality themselves. It is not, Hodgson believes, likely to supplant alcoholic wine as a dominant style, but it is slowly shifting to a market with even greater choice for the consumer. “We envision a world,” he summarises, “where choosing between alcoholic and alcohol-free wines is a simple, uncompromised decision.”

Zeno sponsors The Spirits Business Awards, where its wines will be served to an esteemed audience of drinks professionals. You can contact them via info@zenowine.com or follow their social accounts via @drinkzeno.